Alex the Parrot
My sister (who just got her PhD in applied mathematics) Katy sent me a great article about a talking, learning 5-year-old intelligence research parrot named Alex (parrot) - Wikipedia:
He called an apple a “banerry”, which Pepperberg thought to be a combination of “banana” and “cherry”, two fruits he was more familiar with.
This part is great, too:
If he said “Wanna banana,” but was offered a nut instead, he stared in silence, asked for the banana again, or took the nut and threw it at the researcher or otherwise displayed annoyance, before requesting the item again.
Comments
John +1
Truly an awesome bird while he was with us. Just reading articles and wikis does not do Alex justice. Check youtube for Alex the Parrot videos. His massive vocabulary was amazing, but nothing like his ability to understand the words/concepts. African Grey Parrots are considered the smartest type of parrot and one of the most intelligent animals on our planet. The book Alex and Me (from what I’ve heard), is wonderful.